Not a Hallucination
by brokentallahassee
Summary: While searching for Henry in Neverland, Emma and Neal find each other.
1. Chapter 1

**Neal/Emma reunion - requested by an anon on Tumblr. It leaves off where I could continue it, so if enough people want me to, I will. Hope you like it :) I own nothing but my words.**

* * *

"Neal," Emma whispered, looking up into the sky of Neverland. It was dark and the cool breeze carried the cries of the lost boys throughout the island. Emma stood alone, reaching up to grab onto her swan necklace, which was no longer around her neck.

"I don't know if this is stupid, I don't know what I really believe anymore, but…I need you. I- I," she stuttered, trying to find words for what she was trying to say, "Your son needs you. Tamara and Greg…they- they took him from me. Tamara took both of you away from me."

Tears were falling from Emma's eyes and she could barely speak.

"I need you to protect him. Protect Henry because I can't right now. He needs both of us and I don't know what to do. Just please watch out for him. I refuse to let him become one of the lost boys, I refuse to let him grow up alone. Protect him. Help me protect him. Our son needs his father, Neal, wherever you are."

* * *

The sound of chirping birds woke Emma up from an uncomfortable sleep. The sun was barely rising over the water and the day was just beginning in Neverland.

Today was the day. The day Emma would fight to bring her son home. She would get him back.

She sat on the shore waiting for what seemed like an eternity waiting for the others to wake up. All she wanted was Henry. She wanted him to be safe in her arms more than anything.

She thought about how "mommy" she sounded. She wondered when she had gotten to that point but realized it was always there. She had wanted to be a mom and loved her son from the second she found out he was growing inside of her. Henry saved her. He was her miracle, the one who made her part of what she had always wanted; a family.

* * *

The day was soon fully upon them and everyone was awake and anxious to find Henry. They decided to split up for the search; Emma and her parents would search together while Rumple, Regina, and Hook formed the second search party.

"Em, we're going to find him. I promise. Family always finds each other," Charming reassured his daughter as they walked through the humid Neverland forest.

Emma smiled at her father, attempting to hide her fear, and answered, "I know. We have to."

Charming had spent the entire journey in dad mode. He did everything from reassuring her that they would bring Henry home to knocking Hook out when he tried to flirt with his daughter. She had to admit, although having a dad was new to her, she couldn't have asked for a better father than Charming.

* * *

Hours passed and they hadn't made much progress. The sky was begging to grow dark and light no longer appeared between the small openings in between the trees.

"I think we should head back to camp. Maybe meet up with the others and compare notes?" Snow suggested, looking at her daughter.

"I'm not giving up until I have Henry back," Emma said, continuing to wonder ahead.

"We're not saying 'give up' Emma," Charming butted in, "We're saying rest up until the morning. You never know what's lurking in this forest and before long it'll be night."

"I can't. I'm not going back. You two can but I'm not going back without my son."

"Honey…we just want you to be safe. If something happens to you, you won't be any help to He-" Snow began, only to be interrupted Emma.

"No. If you want to go back, go. I have to find me son. I can take care of myself." She walked ahead, completely ignoring her parents; she didn't even pay enough attention to know if they'd followed her.

* * *

Before she knew it, bright morning light was shining through the trees. Had she really been searching all night? How did that happen? She knew her parents were worried about her. She could feel it.

She had reached a more rocky area of the island and the climb was beginning to steepen. She slowly and carefully scaled each rock, but it was still difficult to keep her footing.

Emma climbed steadily, keeping her balance on the side of an unstable cliff-like rock. The sun was hot on her back but her only focus was finding Henry. Her mind was spinning with possibilities of what was happening to her son at that very moment. Was he still with Greg and Tamara? Had they given him up to Pan? What was he planning to do with her child?

The sound of a twig snapping and movement in the trees ripped her away from her thoughts. Emma turned her head quickly, trying to see between the trees. Her fast movement caused her foot to slip and before she knew it she was falling quickly towards the ground.

As Emma hit the ground and began to lose consciousness, she heard a voice she knew all too well calling her name.

_"Emma?!"_

* * *

Her head throbbed and she could barely see straight. The sun was hot on her face and she could feel someone's presence next to her. She figured it was her parents, but moving her head to look hurt too much.

She lay there, trying not to panic, but also trying to divert an odd thought from her head. It must have been her imagination, but when she hit the ground, she swore she had heard—

"Emma," the same voice she had heard when she fells sighed in relief.

_It couldn't be, could it?_ She thought.

She attempted to sit up and she felt his hands on her back. The feeling of him so close to her was all too familiar. She didn't want to believe it. There was no way this was real, she must be hallucinating.

Turning her head as much as she could, the voice was confirmed. He was there. He was sitting next to her, holding her up. It didn't feel real, how could it be?

"Neal?" Emma cried. She looked into his eyes, which stared back at her with so much love and so much fear. He ran his hand through her hair, pushing it out of her face.

"Emma," Neal breathed. He smiled at her for a minute, until his face turned serious, "What are you doing out here alone?"

He was so worried about her. She looked at him, trying to hide her fear, and said, "It's Henry—he uh-"

Neal cut her off, "I know. I know about Henry. That's why I'm here."

"Neal, this can't be real. You got shot, you died. There's no way you're really here. I mean, I talked to you when I first got here. I asked you to protect Henry."

"Emma, look at me," he replied, "This is real. I promise you. It's real. I'm here. I'm not a hallucination, I promise you that."

She could see the honesty in his eyes. She knew he wasn't lying to her. She could tell. Even without her "super power", she could tell he was telling the truth. Emma wasn't hallucinating. Neal was really there, sitting next to her.

"How…" Emma whispered, looking him straight in the face.

"How did I get here? That's a long story."

"Neal, I thought I lost you," tears began to well up in Emma's eyes. She hadn't cried in front of many people, but seeing the man who, up until a few minutes ago, she thought she had lost, the person who was partially responsible for her miracle of a son's existence.

"I know. I know, and I'm so sorry. You and Henry were all I thought about when I gained consciousness after all that crap happened, believe me."

"I believe you," Emma said, looking straight at him, "I know that you would do anything for your family."

Neal nodded, "Speaking of that—"

"—we need to find our son," Emma said, finishing his sentence.

Neal helped her up and made sure her balance was steady. He checked her head wound, which wasn't too bad. There wasn't much blood at all, just a small bump and she seemed to be doing okay. He knew she wouldn't rest until she found Henry, so he didn't even try to make her stay put until he knew for sure she was fine. He would just have to keep an eye on her.

As they began to move, the sound of voices were carried through the trees. They weren't familiar to Emma, none of them were her parents, Regina's, Rumple's, or Hook's. She turned her head to look at Neal, and saw panic in his eyes.

"The lost boys," he said, answering the question she hadn't asked. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the trees, "I haven't been here in years but I can still tell you exactly whose voices those are."

He couldn't hide the pain of his years spent in Neverland. It was all over his face. The last thing he wanted was for his son to be experience any of that.

Neal took Emma's hand in his. She didn't attempt to pull away. In that moment, they needed to take care of each other like they had promised to do more than a decade earlier.

"They're moving further away," Neal whispered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," he looked into her eyes like the eleven years they had spent apart had never happened, "Do you trust me?"

Emma looked down, shyly, and then looked back up into his eyes, "Of course I trust you. Even after everything, I still do."

Neal nodded, squeezing her hand even tighter. He gave her that look, the look he had given her every time they were about to make a run for it during their thieving days and together, they took off, hand-in-hand, to find their son.


	2. Chapter 2

**I definitely had enough people requestion that I add more to this, so I did! I'll definitely add more after this one as well! I hope you guys like it!**

* * *

The sun beamed brilliantly through the trees. It was hot and the air was heavy as Neal and Emma wondered through the Neverland forest in search of their son.

"We're going to find him," Neal whispered, watching Emma attempt to hide her pain and fear.

She looked at him quickly before turning her head, tears stinging the corners of her eyes, threatening to spill out at any second.

"We have to," she said, her voice breaking.

Neal's eyes fell to the ground. He couldn't handle seeing Emma like this. There was a point in time when he had known her better than anyone, he probably still did, but he had never seen her as concerned as she was now. She was blaming herself for something that wasn't her fault.

* * *

They continued to walk in silence, both anxious to get to Henry. All either of them could think about was that he was alone, the one thing they had never wanted him to be.

Emma was grateful to have Neal with her, not only because he knew Neverland pretty well, but because having him around made her feel a little closer to her son. Henry was the best thing that had ever happened to her and Neal was partially to thank for that.

Every so often, Neal would steal a glance Emma's way. The pain he saw on her face made him feel guilty. She shouldn't be without their son again. It wasn't fair. He wished more than anything that he had never left her or met Tamara because then she would have never lost Henry. He would be safe with his mother.

The minute he had woken up in the Enchanted Forest after falling through the portal, he began to think about everything he was missing. Every second of his son's life that he may never get to see. Every second he had already missed; the first time he kicked inside of Emma, his first breath, his first step, the first time he said "Dada". He was determined to save Henry. He didn't want himself or Emma to miss out on any more of their son's life.

Their thoughts were interrupted by the sound of voices, some childish and others deep, echoing through the trees. The Lost Boys were getting closed. Emma questioningly looked over at Neal, who nodded. Their pace increased as they tried to get away.

Focusing on fleeing, neither saw a little lost boy with matted blond hair peer out from behind the trees and shout, "Intruders!"

Neal looked over his shoulder, immediately recognizing the wild eyed Lost Boy who had outed them. Quickly reacting, he whispered, "Shit! Emma, run!"

She reacted instantly, reaching for his wrist and following him through the forest.

The crunching of leaves and snapping of twigs warned them that the Lost Boys were growing closer. They didn't have time to stop or time to think. It reminded both Emma and Neal of their thieving days many years before.

In that moment, Emma only thought about running for her life in order to save her son, so she was surprised when, out of nowhere, Neal gently grabbed her arm and pulled her behind a tree. She nearly gasped, but he quickly calmed her down.

"Shhh, we need to let them pass, let them think they're still chasing us."

Emma nodded in agreement. She had forgotten how well he was at creating escape plans.

* * *

Minutes passed before they heard the Lost Boys scurry by. From the small patch of bushes and trees where Emma and Neal were hiding, they could see the boys. Some looked young and scared, others looked hopeless and exhausted, all wanting a place to call home. It reminded Emma a bit of herself when she was a child and then she thought about the man standing next to her, who had spent hundreds of years on the island wanting a home like all of those other boys.

"I can't—Our son can't grow up like this," Emma sighed, looking up at Neal. She could see the pain of the childhood spent in Neverland in his eyes.

He looked at her, clearly trying not to tear up, and whispered, "I won't let him. I promise."

They stared into each other's eyes for a long minute, one that seemed like an eternity, neither wanting to break away.

"Do you think they're gone?" Emma finally asked, breaking her gaze. She shuffled her feet a little and stared at the ground, embarrassed.

Neal then cleared his throat and barely managed to utter the word "Yeah."

* * *

The two inched their way through the forest, now taking extra precautions to avoid the Lost Boys. They made small talk as they walked, both trying not to bring up the moment they had shared just minutes earlier, which wasn't easy.

"I wonder how he's doing," Emma said, speaking her mind. She looked down at her feet, worried about her little boy.

"So am I. He's a tough kid, though. He's got your DNA, after all."

Emma rolled her eyes and jokingly began to walk ahead of Neal. He quickly caught up with her, only to stop right in his tracks.

"What is it?" she asked, concerned.

"Henry," he said looking straight ahead.

"What?"

She followed Neal's eye line, noticing her son's red and grey scarf swaying gently from a tree that led straight to a large cave. The scarf was caked in mud, but both Emma and Neal knew it was Henry's. He had worn it a thousand times.

Neal pulled the scarf from the tree. Before handing it to Emma, he carefully clutched it in his hands, remembering the times he had gotten to spend with Henry. He refused to believe that he would never get anymore.

The look on Emma's face while holding her son's scarf was the same that had been on Neal's, the need to be with their child.

Without another word, Emma held the scarf to herself and walked forward towards the cave, determined to find her son more than ever. Neal walked steadily alongside her, ready for a fight if that meant bringing Henry home.


End file.
